Process of and apparatus for cleansing bottles.



No. 840,273. I PATENTED JAN. 1, 1907.

' E.- WAGNER.

PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR CLEANSING BOTTLES.

APPLICATION FILED 0019,1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

N9. 840,273. I PATENTIED JAN. 1,1907.

I B. WAGNER. PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR GLEANSING'BOTTLBS.

- APPILIOATION FILED 0019, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N b B; Q A M N X A?) as L 3 A F n b Q 0; A k F \a Q h\ L A I Q 3 Invenfor: mines sea.- W

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. a

EDWARD WAGNER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR CL EANSING BOTTLES;

- (/leansim Bottles, of which the following is a specification. 4

'lh1s lnvention is-of the system and process of cleansing bottles,jars, and simllar articles in which the same cleansing fluid (consisting usually of a lye solution or the like) is used machines in such manner that the same may- 7 utilize the same body of cleansing fluid in series and suitably connecting same by pipes and arranging pumps in a proper manii g more than once and of the apparatus and arrangement of apparatus for accomplishing that result. Said process is usually practiced by arranging a bank of bottle-cleaning ner with relation to same, suitab e drainipes. being also provided.- The preferred form of bottle-cleaning machine which I propose thus to arrange in a bank or series and which I have illustrated and described in this application for patent isthat illustrated,-described, and claimed in my application for atent for bottle-cleaner'filed July 21, 1905, erial No. 270,616. In the accompanying drawings, f ming part of this specification, in which like c aracters of reference denote like parts wherever j they occur, Figure 1 is a fragmentary see tional viewof one end of a bottle-cleaning Fig.

machine of the kind mentioned above.

2 is a sectional view on the line 2 2', Ti and Fig. 3 is a diagraimnatical view of,a of three bottle-washing machines g. 1,; bank 7 juch as that illustrated in the preceding fig res and in detail in the drawings of my said copendapplication, arranged with pumps, supply'and' drain pipes, andi a com mon reservoir for cleansing fluid, so asto operate in series.

The tank 1 inay be elevated above thefloor upon blocks 2 or upon standards and approximately rectangular in form. It 1s strengthened at its corners by the U-shaped angle-irons 3.- A drain-pipe 4 a'llowsof the exit of fluid rom said tank, the mouth of said lrain- )ipc4 being covered by the strainer 5, composed of reticulated. material, to prevent labels which have been soaked oil the bottles during the operation of washing Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed October 9,1905. Serial No. 281,880.

suitable Patented Jan. 1,1907;

from floating intoand clogging the drainpipe. The same object may be accompllshed by any other appropriate means.

he bottle-carrier consists of a revoluble cylinder 6, within which is situated the cylindervalve 7, having the longitudinal slot 8. Inserted in threaded openings in the periphery of the bottle-carrier 6 are a plurality of nozzles 9, threaded at their ends so inserted. Said nozzles 9 are inserted through the necks of the bottles 10, and the latter are thereby held u on the bottle-carrier 6 and carried throug 1 the operations hereinafter to be described in the various positions illustratively shown in Fig. 2: Through said nozzles 9 the cleansing fluid is ejected with considerable force into the bottles carried by said nozzles.-

The cylinder-valve 7 is normally stationary, while the bottle-carrying cylinder 6 is in tended to revolve around same. The slot 8 j of the valve 7 is normally stationary in the upper arc of the circumference of said valve and in the path of rotation of the nozzles 9 as borne by said bottle-carrier 6, as is clearly indicated in Fig; 2. The slot 8 is referably long enoughto be 0 posite a plura ity .of circumferential rows ofinozzles mounted on the bottle-carrier 6 and is preferably wide 'tudinal rows of said nozzles at one time, as shown in Fig. 2. i

As the bottle-carrier 6 revolves around the valve 7 each longitudinal row of no'zzles 9 and bottles 10, inverted thereupon, asses the slot 7, at which time cleansing fluid is injected intothe bottles through the nozzles 9, the interior of the cylinder-valve 7 being filled with-same under pressure.

hollow is bolted or otherwise suitably-and rigidly fastened thereto. .-The pump '-12 forces the fluid through the supply-pipe 13, hollow shaft 11', cylinder-valve 7, and nozzles 9 into the bottles. The shaft 11 at one end of the machine-is mounted in the bearing 14, supported by the bracket 15, which projects from the end wall ofthe tank '1, being provided with a packing-gh-ind 16.

wheel 17, which meshes with a worm (not shown) on the shaft 18. The shaft 18 is rotated by the gear 19, fixed thereto, meshing enough to be opposite about three longi-,

The fluid enters the cylinder 7 through the shaft 11 of the bottle-carrier 6, which The shaft 11 is driven by the large gear- I with the pinion-'20, mounted on. the shaft 21, i

bearing the satellites 22.

'hollow shaft 11, valve 7, an

' from the reservoir ,Within the. tank 1 flat curvedrails 23 approximately lon tudinal side semicircular in form in their elevation in that portion tank, act as guides or en ports for the bottles for their travel throng the lower half of their circuit, there being one such rail for each circumferential row of'bottles borne by the bottle-carrier 6. The object of these rails 23 is to prevent the bottles from slipping off their respective nozzles when they arrive at and while going through the lower halfof their revolution-that 11s to say, in their travel through the soaking solution in .the tank. In the u perarc of their travel there is no danger oft eirzthus slip ing off thenozzles, because of the inverte position which they then .occupy.

The machine operatesas follows: Motion is imparted to the band-wheel 22, which by means of shaft 21 rotates the pinion 20, and that by meshing with gear 19 causes the worm on shaft .18 .to rotate. The car ,17, meshing with the worm, revolves itss aft ;11 and thereby rotary motion is imparted tothe bottle-earner 6. The bottles are sli ped over the nozzles 9. and-form a pluralit of; ongitudinal and a plurality oficircum erential rows of bottles upon the bottle carrier .6. The pump 12 is started. and draws the cleansing solution from the reservoir 241 through a pipe 25, controlled by valve 26, and forces the same through supplyipe 13, through the hollow shaft 11, and t e opening 27 in one end Wall of the valve 7 into the'mterior ofsaid valve-cylinder 7. With the rotation of the bottle-carrier 6 on its axis each longitudinalrow of nozzles 9 and bottles ,10, borne thereby, is successively brought 0 posite .the slot 8, whereupon the cleansing uid within the cylinder 7 is forced out through said slot 8 into the nozzles 9 andinto the interior of While traveling along the rails 23 theibottles are externally soaked in cleansing solution, which fills the tank. Aftertthe bOt'tlGSalLfl-VG been revolved the desirednumber of times (one or more times,.as past the slot 8- of the valve 7.and throughthe fluid contained in the tank 1 and after the cleansing fluidhasbeen drained or pumped from said tank a supply of clear water for rinsingthe bottles is then injected into the same under the pressure of the pump 12, forcing same through the sup ly-pipe. 13, nozzles 9. After the rinsing has been accomplished the rinsing-water is allowed to Waste, which may be by running out-.through tthe drain-pi e 4;.

InFig. 3 an arrangement of abank'. o botthe bottles 10, effectually cleansing-same.

tle-washers of the kind hereiiibefore do- In this; arrangementthe cleansing fluid, is drawn, .24 through the pipe '25,.

scribed to operate in seriesisillustrated.

which is within the p the case mayrequire) 12, which thereupon forces the cleansing fluid through the supply-pi e 13 into the hol- =low shaft 1-1, valve 7, an nozzles 9. The cleansing fluid runnin out of the bottles into the tank 1 accumu ates until the tank 1 is a proximately full. Upon the conclusion of t e washing and soaking operationin machine A valves 28 and 29 are opened and valve 26' closed, and pump 30 thereupon draws the cleansing solution {through drainpipe 4 from machine A and forces the same through supply-pipe 13 into machine B, where the washing and soaking operations hereinbefore described are accomplished, after which valves 31 and 32 are opened an valves 28 and 29 closed, whichallows pump 33 to draw the cleansing solution from ma' chine B 11111011 hdrain-pipe .4 and .to force it through supp y-. 'ipe 13 into machine 0. When the washing and soaking operations have been concluded in machine C, valves 3.4 and 35 are ,opened and valves 31 and 32 closed, which ,allows .pump 36 .to return the cleansing solution -.through return-pi e 37 ,to thereservoir ill When valve 26 isc osed, as above mentioned, and all of the solution has beendrawn from the tank of machine Aand forced into machine B, valve 38 may .be' opened, whereupon ,pump 12 acts .to draw a supply of clear or rinsing Water through pipe 39 and .forces same through supply-pipe '13 into machine A'in order to accomplish the rin ing processhereinbefore.described. Inl'ikemanner when, all ,of the ,cleansing solution has beentdrawnfromthe ,tank. of machine .13 and forced into .thatof machine:C valve 38 may be closed, while 26is reopened, so that while pump 12 is forcing cleansing, secondtime into .m'achine A pump 30 will ,be drawing rinsing-water from ,pipe' 39 through branch :pipeAO'past .valve 41, (open) valve 28 being closed, and forcingsame ast valve 29, (open,) valve :42 .beirg close through supply-pipe 13 into machine B. A similar operation can in due course be'performed with relation to machine .C .with valve 31 closed, valves 32 and 513 open, and valve 44 closed,the rinsing-water being drawn through branch pipe 45 from the ,pipe 39 in this 1nstance. When the rinsing has been accom plished in machine A and it'i deslred to run the water into the waste-pipe 46, valve 38 will be closed, (valve 26 being already closed)? valve 41 will be leftclosed, .valve 28 will be opened, valve 29 (will be left closed, and valve 42 will be opened. Whenit s desired to allow therinsing-water for machine ,Bto waste, valve 29 is closed. and valves 31 ,and 44 opened, while valves 32 and 13, are left closed. This allows the water to run into waste-pipe lfithrough the branch waste-pipe 1? In a similar operation in connection w1th ma- -.chine C valves 32 and 35 would be closed.

pastthe valve-26 (when open) by the pump Too solutionfor the while valves 34 and 48 would be opened, thus allowing the rinsing-water to waste through branch pipe 49 and wastepipe 46.

From the foregoing description it will be evident that this system of bottle-washing allows of a very convenient, useful, and economicalarrangement of a plurality of bottle-washers operating in series in which the same cleansing solution does service in all in succession, and whereby waste of time is .minimized, the rinsing operation going on in one machlne whlle the cleansing process is being practiced in one more advanced in the series and the unloading of bottles from the bottle-carrier in one of the series takingplace while the rinsingqvater is draining from the tank of that machine.

Having thus described my said invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A bank of l'J ttle-cleanSerS arranged to operate successively in series so as to utilize the same body of cleansing fluid more than once.

2. A bank of bottle-cleansing machines so connected together and arranged as to use the same body of cleansing fluid repeatedly.

3. Abank of bottle-cleansers each provided with a supply-pipe and an'eXit-pipe, said supply-pipe being adapted by suitable valves to admit first a cleansing solution or fluid, and

later a rinsing fluid, and said exit-pipe being adapted by suitable valves to drain said cleansing solution into a receptacle where it may be used again, but said rinsing fluid into a separate pipe or receptacle.

4. A bank of bottle-cleansers adapted and arranged to operate successively in series sothat, when the bottle-cleansing solution is in use in one of said machines, the bottle-rinsing operation will be proceeding in another,

each machine being adapted to be used alternately for cleansing and for rinsing.

5. A bank of bottle-cleansers so arranged and adapted. to operate successively in series that, when the bottle-cleansing fluid is in use in one of said machines, the bottle-rinsing operation is'proceeding in another, while in a third the unloading of the bottles is takin place, each machine being adapted to be used successively for cleaning, for rinsing, and for unloading and loading.

6. The herein-described process of cleansing bottles, consisting in mounting the bottles on one group of bottle-supports,injecting a cleansing solution under pressure through said-bottle-supports in said bottles, allowing said cleansing solution to run out of said bottles to for. a bath, passing said bottles through said bath; mounting another batch of bottles upon another group of bottle-supports, pu ping said cleansing-solution bath from contiguity with the first-mentioned group of bottles and forcing the same und ported thereon, allowing same to escape from saidlast-mentioned bottles to form a bath therefor, and passing said bottles through said bath; repeating the operations hereinbefore mentioned in connection with the first-named groups of bottles as may be dey sired; injecting rinsing-water under pressure through the first-mentioned group of bottlesupports into the first group of bottles when all of the cleansing solution has been withdrawn from contiguity therewith; and repeatin said rinsing operation in connection with the second group of bottles when the cleansing-solution bat for said second group of bottles has been withdrawn, from contiguity therewith.

7. The herein-described process of cleansing bottles, consisting in mounting the bottles on one group of bottle-supports, in'e'ctin a cleansing solution under pressure t oug said bottle-supports in said bottles, allowing said cleansing solution to run out of said bottles to form a bath, passing said bottles through said bath; mounting another batch of bottles upon another group of bottle-'supports, punpingv saidcleansi -solution bath lrorn contiguity with the st-mentioned group of'bottles and forcing tlie same under pressure through said second-mentioned 95 said last-mentioned bottles to form a bath therefor, and passing said bottles through said bath; repeating theoperations herein.-

before mentioned in connection" with the groups of bottles as may be deloo sired; injecting rinsing-water underprgssure through the first-mentioned group ofbottle supports into the first group of bottles when all of the cleansing solution has been withdrawn fro n contiguity therewith ,repeating said rinsing operation in connection with the cleansingsecond grou of bottles when the solution bath for said second group of bottles has been withdrawn from contiguity therewith; and removing the group of bottle-supports while the said rinsing operation is being perforned in connection with the second group of bottle-sup orts.

8. The herein-described process of 0 cansing bottles, consisting tles on one group of bottle-supports, injecting a cleansing solution under'pressure through said bottle-supports in said bottles, allowing said cleansing solution to run out of saidbottles to form. a bath, passing said bottles through said bath; mounting another batch of bottles upon another group of bottle-supports, pumping said cleansing-solution bath from contiguity with the first-:rentioned group of .bottles and forcing the sane uner pressure through said second-mentioned bottles fro .n the first IIS in mounting the botgroup of bottle-supports into'the'botties supported thereomailowing same to escape from said .last mentioned bottles to forma bath -therefor, and passing said bottles through said bath g'repeati'ng "the operations herein- -before mentioned 1n- ,connection with the -firstnamed'groups of bottles as may bedesired; injecting rnising water under pressure through the first mentioned group otbottie 1 osupports into'the" i'irst-.='group of bottles when ail'fofi'the cleansing solutionha's been with-: drawn =fr'om contiguity therewith; .and re-- peatin =.said-rinsing' cperation in connection with-t a second group'of bottles when'the :5 zcle'ansing-solut'on' b'ath'for said second group of'hottl'es' has-been withdrawn from contiguitytherevvitnthesame body of cleansing soluticn ess in a lurality of groups" of? bottles.

cessively perform distinct steps in'the' cleans-' ing-process, each machine performing a particuiar step after the "preceding machine has :performed the same step, the fluid used in the 3 5 first machine being passed on to and reused in the second'machine.

12. A bank of bottle-cleansing machines, each of which'is'provided with a supply-pipe and an exit-pipe, said supply ipe being 40 adapted bysuitable valves to a mit first a cleansing solution and later a 'rinsin solution, and said exit-pipe being adapte to be connected to the supply-pipe ofthe succeeding machine so that the fluid used in 4; one machinemay be used again inthe other machines, and said exit-pipes being also adapted-by suitable valves to drain said cleansin solution into a rece tacle where it may he used again, but sai rinsing fluid 5 into a separate receptacle.

V 13. A bank of bottle-cleansing machines ar anged to perform 'diiferent parts of the I cleansing process simultaneously, the fluid used in one machine being passed on to the next, whereupon each machine erforms that part of the cleansing process ast per formed by the machine immediately preceding it.

14. A bank of independent bottle-cleansing machines adapted and arranged to operate in series so that each machine can successively perform distinct steps in the cleansing process, each machine performing a particular step after the preceding machine has performed the same step, suitable .necting the difierent machines, a separate being used for the first step hfthe proc-f -9. t ank' of'independent bott1e-cleansing been used in one can be drawn 'fiuid being'used'for each particular s'ted'p performed the same step, suitable es connecting the different machines'by W rch the fluids used in the first machine arepassed on to and reused in the second machine, and the identity of the fluidsused in the different steps are reserved.

15. A ank of independent bottle-cleansing machines. adapted and arranged to operate in series so that each machine can suecessively perform distinct steps in the cleansing rocess, each machine performing a particu ar step after-theprecedingniachine has pipes confluid'being used for each" particular step, said 'fiuid being used in the first machine, then passed on to and usedin the second machine, and having its identity -preserved throughout.

16. A bank of independent bottle-cleansing machines ada ted and arranged to operate in series so t at each machine can-successively perform distinct steps in the cleansing rocess, each' machine performing a'particu ar step after'the preceding machine has performed the same step, suitable pipes connecting the different machines, a separate of-the cieansing process, each of-said fiui being used in the'first machine, then 1 passedon to and used'i'n'the second machine,-=without being mixed with the 'fluidlusedfin an'y other step.

A' system of bottle-cleaning,consist ingin the. arrangement 'of'a pluraht'y-of-bot;

tie-cleansing machines in bank to operate successively in series, each of same being provided with a supply pipe a'ndan exit pipe for cleansing liquid, the supply pipe'of each machine after the first in series connecting with the exit-pipe from the machine' preceding it in series, so'as to allow the cleansing fluid. used in said 'recedin machine to be used in said succeeding mac inc.

1s. A bank of bottle-cleaners sash-5m.-

vided with a supplypi e and-an exit' pipe, the supply-pipe of sec machine after the first in series connecting with the exit-pipe from the machine preceding it in series, other pipes connected to said exit-pipe, and suitable valves whcreby the fluid discharged from each machine through its exit-pipe may be conveyed to the machine succeeding it in series through the supply-pipe thereof, and there reused, or may be conveyed to another receptacle through said other pipe.

19. A bank of bottlecleaners each provided with a supply-pipe and an exit-pipe, the supply-pipe of each machine after the first in series being connected to the exit-pipe from the one preceding it.in series, said supply-pipe being adapt d by suitable valves to admit first a cleansing fluid then a rinsing fluid, sald exit-pipe being adapted to convey 10 connected to seid exit-pipe, said exit-pipe 1 machine or to sei being adapted to convey the fluid from each other pme. In testunony whereof 1 have affixed my signature in presence of two wltnesses.

ED'WARD WAGNER.

machine to the su )ply-pipe of the succeeding Witnesses:

ELLIOTT R. GOLDSMITH, GLADYs WALTON. 

